Tom Homer kicks Bath to 12-3 victory over Sale
Last Updated: 09/03/15 9:17am
Full-back Tom Homer kicked four penalties to take Bath to a 12-3 win over Sale Sharks, the club's first Aviva Premiership win in two months.
The win halted Bath's worrying Premiership losing run that had seen them suffer successive defeats against play-off rivals Saracens, Saints and Exeter.
For large parts of the try-less encounter Bath looked short on confidence, yet Homer inched them to a 12-3 victory by punishing Sale's set-piece indiscipline.
Fly-half Danny Cipriani landed a first-half penalty for Sale, but their failure to secure even a losing bonus point was another blow to their play-off hopes.
When Bath resume Premiership action against hapless London Welsh later this month, they will do so buoyed by returning England men George Ford, Jonathan Joseph, Anthony Watson and Dave Attwood.
And compared to some teams around them in a congested play-off picture, Bath's Premiership run-in does not appear - on paper at least - to be anywhere near as difficult.
It was an occasion when the result meant far more than the performance, and while Bath are currently nowhere near the free-flowing sight they have resembled several times this season, four points were still collected.
Bath showed a number of changes from the side beaten by Exeter last time out, with scrum-half Chris Cook, prop Henry Thomas and flanker Matt Garvey among those players recalled.
Cipriani's return from England duty was the headline selection in a Sale team that still harboured play-off ambitions, but it was Bath who made the early running, using Garvey and centre Sam Burgess as prominent ball-carriers, and Homer landed an opening penalty strike after 14 minutes that rewarded their territorial dominance.
But Bath also suffered an early injury blow when Thomas, who was on England bench duty against Ireland in Dublin last weekend, left te field with a shoulder injury.
It added to the home team's front-row injury worries, with props Paul James and David Wilson also currently sidelined, and meant an early appearance for Kane Palma-Newport.
Cipriani missed a golden chance to put Sale level when he slipped on contact with the ball, and the kick drifted wide.
Sale full-back Mike Haley then dropped the restart to compound Sharks' frustration, and Homer doubled Bath's advantage when referee Wayne Barnes awarded a penalty following a scrum offence.
Cipriani then made amends for his miss by scoring from 48 metres, with Bath unable to lock away the result due to a combination of their own errors and resilient Sale defence.
Bath led 6-3 at half-time and the visitors took early charge of the second period, camping inside Bath's 22, yet their hopes of an opening try were denied when centre Johnny Leota was penalised for crossing in midfield.
Frustrations boiled over when Bath captain Stuart Hooper and Sale lock Nathan Hines were involved in an off-the-ball
skirmish before Homer gained a fifth penalty chance, and he completed his hat-trick to secure a six-point advantage.
Homer then extended Bath's lead to nine points, and there was no way back for Sale as the home side comfortably closed matters out.
